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How to Design a Money-Making Website

Do you love online shopping? Then you may want to start your own ecommerce business! If you want to sell products or services online, you'll need to create a website that not only draws in new customers but also holds their attention right until the end of the transaction. Many factors can influence the success of a website, including the use of images, the website's flow and navigation, and the checkout system. To start making real money, you'll need to keep all of these elements of design in mind.Ease of Navigation

Whether your potential customer is looking for something specific or just wants to go virtual window shopping, make sure that your website design meets both of these needs. Common mistakes that many websites make include overloading the page with flash animation or cramming products into too many categories. Even with a large volume of products, it's best to group these into a few logical categories to avoid a cluttered home page. Include an easily visible search tool on the front page, for those who are looking for a specific item. Using templates provided by the best ecommerce solutions can help you create a website with smooth, logical navigation. User testing can also be beneficial when designing your website, so be sure to ask your friends and family what they think.

Effective Use of Images

Part of the fun of shopping is trying out new products. Because the customer isn't in a physical store where he or she can touch the products or try them on, photos are extremely important to ecommerce success. Be sure to use high quality photos that not only portray the product in a flattering but accurate light. Consumers are highly unlikely to make a purchase without at least seeing the product.

Simple, Secure Checkout System

The checkout system is what will make or break your online sale. Customers are likely to change their minds at the last minute if it takes too long to buy something. Websites with a one-step checkout system experience the highest volume of sales. It's also helpful to offer your customers a variety of different payment gateways to choose from, and to avoid pop-up registration windows. Free point of sale software can make it easy to create a user-friendly shopping cart and checkout system, even enabling mobile payments.

Social Media Integration

To grow your brand, it's helpful to integrate your website with social media. You can install buttons on your main website that link back to your business's social media profiles, and allow users to like or share products on your website that they are interested in. This can grow your audience and allow you to expand on your money-making potential. Blogging is also a good way to interact with your customers, providing a personality and face to your brand. Many ecommerce management systems will automatically create these links for you, for the full marketing package.

By incorporating these basic elements into the fundamental design of your ecommerce website, you can reap greater rewards and create a more profitable business.